29 de março de 2024

Use of Varenicline for 4 Weeks Before Quitting Smoking

26 de abril de 20113min0

Archivess of Internal MedicineDecrease in Ad Lib Smoking and Increase in Smoking Cessation Rates

Peter Hajek, PhD; Hayden J. McRobbie, PhD; Katie E. Myers, MSc, CPsychol; John Stapleton, MSc; Al-Rehan Dhanji, MBBS, MRCS
Arch Intern Med. 2011;171(8):770-777. doi:10.1001/archinternmed.2011.138

Background  The use of varenicline tartrate alleviates postquit withdrawal discomfort, but it also seems to reduce the “reward” associated with smoking. The current treatment schedule, which commences 1 week before quitting, relies primarily on the first mechanism. We set out to determine whether increasing the prequit medication period renders cigarettes less satisfying and facilitates quitting.

Results  Varenicline preloading reduced prequit enjoyment of smoking (P = .004) and smoke intake (P < .001), with 36.7% of participants reducing their cotinine concentrations by more than 50% (reducers). Varenicline preloading did not affect postquit withdrawal symptoms, but it increased 12-week abstinence rates (47.2% in the varenicline arm vs 20.8% in the placebo arm, P = .005). The effect was particularly strong among the reducers in the varenicline arm (66.7% in reducers vs 22.6% in nonreducers, P = .002). Varenicline preloading was well tolerated.

Conclusions  Although several issues remain to be clarified, varenicline preloading can generate a substantial reduction in ad lib smoking and enhance 12-week quit rates. Current treatment schedules may lead to suboptimal treatment results. Trials with longer follow-up periods are needed to corroborate these findings.

Trial Registration  clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00789074

 


Author Affiliations: United Kingdom Centre for Tobacco Control Studies, Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, Barts and The London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary, University of London (Drs Hajek and McRobbie and Ms Myers), and Cancer Research United Kingdom Health Behaviour Research Centre, University College (Mr Stapleton), and Barts and The London National Health Service Trust (Dr Dhanji), London, England.


Sobre a UNIAD

A Unidade de Pesquisa em álcool e Drogas (UNIAD) foi fundada em 1994 pelo Prof. Dr. Ronaldo Laranjeira e John Dunn, recém-chegados da Inglaterra. A criação contou, na época, com o apoio do Departamento de Psiquiatria da UNIFESP. Inicialmente (1994-1996) funcionou dentro do Complexo Hospital São Paulo, com o objetivo de atender funcionários dependentes.



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